A Moment Shared
by ArashiEragon
Summary: During the timeskip, Hinata rests a moment, and thinks about her love... and why she cares about him.


DISCLAIMER: I do not own Naruto. Yet. However, I do own 18-Chanruns away with Android 18 from DBZ

A Moment Shared

A NaruHina fic

There was a low sound of muffled footsteps against wood, as the sun shone brightly upon the enclosed, almost compound like area. It was a beautiful day in the Village Hidden In the Leaves, a fact that did not escape the notice of the young girl who walked down the porch of the area. The teenager turned, and stepped down a few steps, sitting down upon the porch of the home, and sighed slightly.

She was young, that much was clear- her beautiful face still possessed the innocence of childhood, though it was mature and quiet. Her eyes were an odd colour, the pupils completely white, and the hair which framed her face was a silken black. Her shirt, the same colour as her hair, cut into a v at her neck, and extended to mid-way down her forearms, tightly hugging a body which was growing into womanhood. Looking at her, you probably wouldn't suspect a fragile, ethereal being such her as one of the bearers the Kekkai Genkai of the Hyuga Clan, yet she was, and more besides. She was not only the bearer of it- she was the heiress of the household itself, Hinata Hyuga. However, at this moment, her thoughts were far from those of her own clan, and instead, dwelling upon one who was the last of his own.

"Naruto-Kun…" her lips murmured, as she glanced towards the sky. A wind rustled by, and she placed a hand to her hair, stroking it back, as a single leaf danced by. It had been over a year since the blonde child had left the village, yet at times like this, Hinata still found him fixed upon her mind. And who could blame her?

After all, one did not simply forget about their love, be it in one year or one hundred.

Her pale eyes glanced towards the skies, almost sparkling with sadness. It was incredible how fast the year had gone, and yet, at the same time, how slow. How much things had changed, and yet, how they seemed to stay the same. Her team remained until the tutelage of Kurenai-Sensei, Genin's for the time being, though they were to enter the next Chuunin Exam, if all went as planned. Her father and brother-Neji seemed closer than ever, as did the Hyuga's as a whole, Main and Branch. She still met Sakura-Chan, Ino-Chan and the others… and yet, there was still something missing. She couldn't go down the street and meet him, or accidentally run into him whilst shopping. She couldn't talk to him and his team about the up-coming exams, or plan about the future. She couldn't see him, couldn't hear him, couldn't be with him… but that didn't mean she had forgotten him.

Hinata smiled secretly to herself. How could she forget him, of all people? He, who she loved? She was an oddity in that way- back at the academy, all the girls her age had crushed on Sasuke, the secretive and- even she had to admit it- handsome genius of the class. Naruto was seen as little more than a joke, a status amplified by his failure to graduate from the school three times in a row. Everyone had mocked him, laughed at him openly in the classroom, including some of the teachers, as he failed to perform the simplest of jutsu's, which even Shikamaru grasped.

He was a failure. More than a failure, he was a freak. And yet, despite all that, he still protested one thought, one dream:

"I'M GONNA BECOME THE NEXT HOKAGE, JUST YOU WAIT AND SEE!!"

The thought of such a failure becoming the leader of Konoha naturally prompted another bout of laughter from everyone… everyone except for the single, quiet haired girl in the top left corner of the room, who merely frowned, and looked to her desk as the newest string of laughter broke out. To many, it would seem as though she were trying to avoid laughing in such a situation…and those many would be wrong. It wasn't the laughter which she didn't like- it was the expression on her Naruto's face she didn't want to see, the hurt look, the one of inferiority and neglect- it was a bitter mask, and one which she had worn all too often.

_But… when I did look at your face…that's when I knew…_she reminded herself with a slight smile, still looking into the sky.

_I thought we might be the same, because no one thought much of us- we were failures to the name of ninja. But we weren't… when I looked at you, I didn't see myself- I saw the person you were_

He had always accepted his classmates abuse with a steely grit, a growl of defiance, with his head down low, as if in shame. But he never looked like she did, a crumbling, defeated expression, ready to be swept up by the world. He was…different.

_Naruto-Kun.. you weren't like me, not at all. You always ignored what they said, and went on trying. You never thought you couldn't do it, even when no one else did... _

No, that was a lie… not everyone was against him, even if almost nobody thought he'd do what he claimed and become Hokage. Ever since Hinata had seen his face, seen beyond the child who was laughed at by others as she was, seen the resolute man inside, she knew it; if there was anyone who could make their dreams a reality, it was him.

It was strange though, the idea of it all. How could he? After all, she herself wanted to improve herself, like he did- she followed his example, and worked hard to better herself… but it never seemed to work. And… she knew why.

_Naruto-Kun… when I watched you, from a distance...I saw what was different between us. Your will, you were so determined to full fill your dream, no matter what happened to you, and you were confident- you thou-_

She paused, and glanced to the ground momentarily, before smiling again.

_You knew what was best, you knew you would become hokage. You never doubted that for a second… even though you had to push yourself, harder than the rest of us…_

And he did have to work harder than anyone else. Everyday, after school, she stayed behind, hidden, and watched him practice, practice harder than they had learnt. Try out jutsu's for himself, throwing targets at a tree, anything he had to. And even if they failed, even when his aim was ridiculously off, he never gave up, never surrendered to the will of fate, to the status quo. He always just got back up, picked everything up, and tried again. And again. And again.

Over and over, until he got it right, while she stayed as long as she had to, watching and waiting, cheering for him inside, but always too afraid, too scared to make herself known to him, to let him know the truth.

"Naruto-Kun…the truth… the truth is…" she tried aloud to the air, in the privacy of her own home.

She laid a hand on her chest, the other upon her knees, face towards the ground, and breaking into a weak, watery smile.

"Naruto-Kun… I love you…" she managed, after so long to get out. It felt as though a barrier had been broken, even if he wasn't around to hear it.

"Everyday, since I saw you for who you really are… your everything to me, everything I want to be, everything I'd like to achieve. Your confidence, your belief in yourself… no matter what anyone else said, you didn't care, you only needed your own hopes, your own dreams. You taught me things no one else ever did, like belief in myself…"

She had tried harder since she saw him. Despite her failure in the Chuunin exams, she still tried, and trained harder than anyone else.

"What inspiration was…"

"_I…don't go back on my word." _That was what she had said during her battle with Neji, the words she had learnt from Naruto's resolution from his battle with Kiba, and from his life._ "That is… my ninja way." _

"That even someone like me can change…"

"_Na-Naruto-kun…do you…think...I've changed?"_ she had pleaded to ask him as her consciousness faded after her fight.

She glanced towards the sky, before mouthing the final thing he had taught her.

"What love is…"

There was a moment of silence, a whistling wind, Hinata's smile remaining fixed.

"Naruto-Kun… I love you…"

Meanwhile, elsewhere, far from the village of the leaf, a young boy, with blonde hair and blue eyes was also smiling, glancing towards the sky, before something grazed his hand.

"Huh, a leaf, hm…" he commented, looking almost confused by it, before smiling slightly.

"A leaf… is fragile, but beautiful. That's why… it needs to be protected!" he resolved to himself, a grin splitting the whisker markings on his face further apart, as he beamed towards the sky, thinking of his home, and the ones who awaited him there still…

"It won't be much longer…" he promised them, and himself, as he released the plant, allowing it to drift into the breeze.

Separated in body, the two's spirits were akin, each thinking the same thing.

All I need…

They seemed to call out towards one another, and each closed their eyes as one, seeming to drift into an imagination. A black sky, dotted with sparkling stars, each finding the other beside them.

Is to protect the life of…

The pair smiled at one another, and Hinata offered her hand, Naruto grinning and taking it, holding her close, and sitting down beside her, running a hand through her hair, his breath fanning her cheek as he whispered words of love in her ear comfortingly, soothingly, like she'd always dreamed he would…

"Someone precious…" Hinata murmured, opening her eyes…and smiling once more to the bright blue gem of a sky.


End file.
